[matthewtoast]

> most people see it as going backwards or retreating and struggle to get over this psychologically

If you return a chess piece to a previous position, it's possible that doing so loses you a tempo. Even if, strictly speaking, the game/board doesn't care about the direction you move, saying it's "just" another position isn't quite accurate, since turns matter, and using up a turn to walk back a piece may give your opponent a +1 turn advantage?